Slumdog Millionaire award-winning actress Rubina Ali loses home in fire

The young actress who played the girl child in Slumdog Millionaire has lost her home in a large fire that spread through the illegal shanty town in which she lives in north Mumbai. Though she was promised an apartment after the success of the film, I guess they never got it for her?.....which is horror #2 in this story.

Read the BBC article.

Rubina is about 12 now. She was even cast in a Bollywood film after Slumdog. Why isn't someone with power doing more about her life situation? The section on the trust fund is interesting...and possibly quintessentially Western sketchiness.

TV: Wolverines are more awesome than you think.

"The wolverine is perhaps the least known mammal in North America and one of the least studied large carnivores in the world"
--Wolverine: Chasing the Phantom


Great episode of PBS's Nature.
Who knew actual wolverines were so interesting? They're like a dog plus a bear. They do not, however, have adamantium claws. What makes up for this reality is the fact that you will get to watch a full-grown man narrate the 1st-person experience of a wolverine :)

Watch it free at hulu or at PBS.com.

Exciting news in the world of Sci-fi television

Warning: shameless geekery and fandom ahead.

1) Firefly:
As a result of the SyFy network deciding to re-air the original season of Firefly, new life juice has been injected into the Bring-Firefly-Back movement. Who knows where this particular tributary of the river will lead--the organizers seem to be quite realistic about the likelihood of new episodes of Firefly starting up. But, I will continue to hold strong hope that the Browncoats will succeed in the end, as they certainly should. I think we are in a completely different cultural place from where we were in 2002. We are in a place of accelerated intersectionality. We are beginning to almost fetishize the blatant mash-up of genres. Mmmmm...delicious.
The Facebook Group and
Help Nathan Buy Firefly


2) Star Trek:
Netflix made a deal with CBS to offer ALL GENERATIONS of Star Trek for instant streaming. THANK THE GODS.

A genuine first reaction:

why i write...TED: Sheena Iyengar on The Art of Choosing

this video is not only excellent, entertaining, and addressing some of the most interesting conflicts in culture(s), it articulates a core reason why i write. i grew up in a house with parents that represented diametrically opposing cultural views on choice and the nature of the individual...so instead of choosing a camp, i became a poet and a buddhist sympathizer--always inhabiting the borerlands.

Analogy as the Core of Cognition

here is Douglas Hofstadter on "Analogy as the Core of Cognition"
from the Stanford Presidential Lecture Series in the Humanities and Arts.

sit down with some fruit and coffee/pizza and beer, and settle in for the hour. it's worth it.

Human + iPhone = Cyborg

Check out this Wired.com article about how an American filmmaker was crushed and stranded under Haitian earthquake rubble for nearly 3 days...and survived thanks to his iPhone.

Man Buried in Haiti Rubble Uses iPhone to Treat Wounds, Survive

TED Talks: Sendhil Mullainathan

Your mind lies--or just gets confused--in the final mile of a long journey.  This is an opportunity.

Dawn Dish Soap Commercial--a response

I was work multi-tasking, with the tv on in the background, and this commercial came on:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aUkOgE4K7j4

and it evoked in me some very strong feelings.

1. It's a smart use of fuzzy animals. Watching videos of cute and cuddly creatures is oh so popular. Many blogs prove.

2. Saving animals from oil spills is a very particular aleviation of human guilt--if anything is a sounding signal of our materialistic human greed, it's oil. Dawn helps you save animals and alliviate your guilt.

3. All this is somehow revolting.

I was initially revolted by the use of ducklings to sell dish soap...

but I have to respect the smart marketing. I'm going to check up on whatever marketing numbers I can find for that commercial.

Thoughts? Feelings? Responses?

Why Social Media Matters--a video for your viewing pleasure

My friend and colleague, the social media maven Kerianne Mellott posted this video on her blog today.  Because of my job (and general marriage to the internet), I end up spending a lot of time explaining why social media matters.

Here are the numbers.  Watch it. love it.

Poetry in the Morning--Session 1

Here is the first session of my Youtube project Poetry in the Morning where I read work that inspires me, straight out of bed, with maybe a little coffee in my system.

Poetry in the Morning--Session 1: "Switching" from Juliana Spahr's Fuck You--Aloha--I Love You